British airways has confirmed that flights to Nigeria have resumed after a worldwide systems collapse led to cancellations of several flights around the world. The system crashed affected flight plans across the world and is thought to have cost the airline hundred’s of millions of pounds.
British Airways has responded quite quickly to the debacle and explained that they have or are planning to put in place the following measures to cushion the disruption in service:
- The airline would be willing to refund passengers who would want to terminate their scheduled flights.
- The airline is in touch with passengers to keep them informed of the latest developments as they unfold.
- Heathrow airport has continued to provide stranded passengers water and snacks.
- The airline has asked customers to follow its websites and twitter handle for updates about flight schedules.
While British Airways, has kept customers informed through calls, sms and other communication platforms, Nigerian airlines do not bother doing same. Email and sms notifications of flight cancellation or changes are often absent. Where they are sent, it is too late to make a change. Sometimes these notifications are not sent, despite charging customers for them. Many Nigerian airlines, use their social media handles to push promotions, often ignoring complaints from customers. In some cases, the handles are not active.
BA has also catered to passengers who are stranded at its Heathrow and Gatwick terminals by providing water and snacks. Nigerian airlines do not offer such customer care. Airline staff pack up their equipment and close their counters. This leads to passengers attacking them, as was witnessed recently with Air Peace.
BA has freely offered refunds to customers who would want to terminate their scheduled flights. Nigerian airlines prefer charging a fee for this, even when the cause of the cancellation is from their end. Sometimes refunds take a day or two to process, making passengers have to spend additional money to book another flight immediately.
BA has also given customers the option of re routing their flights. Nigerian airlines do not have such services, preferring to cancel the flight .
British Airways was established in 1974, and is the largest airline by fleet size. The airline yesterday cancelled all flights from its Heathrow and Gatwick bases as a result of an IT glitch. The company made revenues of £11.2 billion in 2015.